Second Lieutenant Charles Mathijs was an early volunteer with the land forces in Great Britain. He joined the paratrooper unit and achieved excellent results at the Officer Cadet Training Unit (OCTU), where he distinguished himself as an ideal leader who paid great attention to his men. In July 1944, he was first parachuted with a combat group behind German lines in France to disrupt the operations of the retreating Germans.

Subsequently, Mathijs was assigned to the British 'Intelligence School No. 9 Western European Area' (IS 9 WEA). He helped return more than 300 escaped airmen to their own lines. On September 1, 1944, he was parachuted into enemy territory for the second time, this time in the Belgian Ardennes. From December 1944 to January 1945, he participated in the Battle of the Ardennes.

Charles Mathijs dedicated much of his energy to training young people. It was during military maneuvers north of Leopoldsburg that he was killed on March 4, 1945, struck by a ricocheting projectile.